What you see here is one very special bevel. You see, the builder, Tony Hannagan, is a legend Down Under in the secretive world of those that worship at the alter of the Bevel…

Tony owns BevelTech, Australia’s go-to Bevel expert, where over the decades, many amazing race engines have been built, original bikes restored, customs created and dreams made into reality. Great things can’t go on forever, though, and at the young age of 60, Tony decided to build his last customer creation and concentrate on engines and enjoying his own many bikes…

It just happened that at around this time, the owner of this incredible bike, Daniel Poole, was edging closer to biting the bullet and buying his dream bike, a bevel drive Ducati.

“For years I dreamed of owning a bevel and in particular, I had fallen in love with a custom bevel that was well known in the bevel community as Vern,” explained Daniel. “This was built by Tony, so I went about contacting him to find out which particular models are the best donor bikes for a project such as Vern, to which he replied, ‘Well I am building something at the moment similar to Vern but better!’

BevelTech two-into-one underseat exhaust is stunning. It has a removable baffle for the track.

“That got my attention. We discussed the plan, the bike, and the build and then Tony offered me the opportunity to buy in before the bike is done so I could have some input into the build and ultimately at the end, purchase the bike.

“Another reason I was very keen was that Tony announced it would be his last customer custom build, so that made it extra special. Tony continues engines and pre-ordered work but this one would be his last build to sell”.

The monoshock frame was originally for the Barcelona 24 Hour endurance race but was banned.

Talk about good timing. Daniel got in on the project just at the right time to have enough input to make the bike his, while leaving the main design to Tony of course.

“I had input into the paint colour and scheme, running gear like clip-ons, wheels, rearsets… but to be honest I really just wanted this build to be pretty much Tony’s influence and something that he was really proud to put his name on. He was the one that created Vern after all, which was the bike that got me hooked on bevel drive Ducatis”.

Vern 1 featured a mildly worked 900SS engine, with a special 860 frame and 916 geometry

Vern is one hell of a bike. It is a worked 900SS motor in a modified 860 frame with modern running gear and 916 geometry. As you can see in the photos, Vern2 is a sibling of Vern.

Everything happens for a reason, particularly in the motorcycle world where the old six degrees of separation definitely applies. As it turns out, Tony used to be a Chef and Daniel is a bit of a celebrity Chef here in OZ, in the superyacht scene, where he travels the globe chasing the sun and cooking for the rich and famous. Food, motorcycles, bevel drives. These guys were going to work well together…

The frame was designed as a one-off endurance race frame that was found illegal just before the Barcelona 24-Hour in 1975

The bike is so interesting. It started life as a one-off super rare endurance frame sitting on the floor gathering dust in a shop in Italy…

“I came across a rare monoshock race frame in Imola,” says Tony, “It was designed to run in the Barcelona 24-hour race in 1975 but was banned at the last minute for being illegal. It needed a rear shock, while the rest of the bike is an amalgamation of parts I have collected over the past 40-odd years”.

The 1976 900SS powerplant has had the Hannagan treatment

The engine is a stock 1976 900SS with first oversize pistons, with a bore of 86mm and a stroke of 74.4mm. Making a modest 70hp standard, with a compression ratio of 8.5:1, stock cams, valves, just some neat port matching and careful assembly by Tony. New valve guides and seats were inserted, new valves used as well. The bottom end is completely rebuilt with new bearings, gears where needed, and a lightweight Sureflex clutch, while the crankshaft runs on new bearings and the conrods are new.

Fuelling has to be by Dell’Orto, with a pair of unfiltered 40mm suckers feeding the big two-valve cylinders, while an uprated Ducati Elettronica ignition system is used.

Dual Dell’Orto unfiltered 40mm carbies

The exhaust is gorgeous, with Tony making the two-into-one underseat system with removable baffle for track days. The bike is tuned to run on 91-octane pump fuel and final drive is a 520 conversion.
Chassis-wise, this one-off is stunning. The 1975 Verlicchi monoshock frame is chrome moly, as is the Verlicchi swingarm. Powder-coated red, the frame has stock 900SS triple-clamps holding modified 38mm Marzocchi forks. Out the back a fully adjustable Showa shock with piggyback reservoir is used.

The stunning bodywork is made up from a fibreglass SS replica fuel tank, SS styled stunning single seat and tail, and SS styled fairings. Paint is by BevelTech using 2Pk and CutGraphix decals. The clocks are Veglia in a carbon-fibre surround, the tacho being a super rare 100mm white faced item worth its weight in gold.

Veglia clocks with 100mm white faced tacho and carbon surround

All of the electricals are neatly placed up front behind the fairing on a custom top fairing mount and finally, giving Vern2 a face are those awesome 1970s era endurance headlamps. Like two big eyeballs, they really give Vern2 a personality of his own…

Endurance style dual headlights give the bike a character all its own

“The big thing for me,” smiles Daniel, “Is that it is a 1975 one-off frame, it will be registered as a 1975 model and I was born in 1975 so Vern2 couldn’t be more suited to me!”

Mr Ware, have you seen this bike running? Sure it’s pretty but does it go?
No one in the Australian Ducati bevel world ever saw the original Vern bike going, it was a BikeXf feature, but smoke and mirrors. Phil Aynsley takes nice pictures no question, but where does your information come from?

Hi Rob, nope I have not seen it running, would not have a clue if it goes – I don’t think it really matters to be honest. The owner can ride it or show it, it’s up to him… My information comes from the owner and builder. Thanks. Jeff.